


Love, MJ

by lowqualtom



Category: Love Rosie (2014), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Inspired by Love Rosie, MJ is still a boss ass bitch, doctor!peter, michelle has a baby but wbk its love rosie, not really - Freeform, single mom, still fuck them kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-05
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2019-11-12 07:22:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18006392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lowqualtom/pseuds/lowqualtom
Summary: Michelle and Peter have been best friends since they were 5, so they couldn't possibly be right for one another...or could they? When it comes to love, life and making the right choices, these two are their own worst enemies.Love, Rosie AU.





	1. Chapter 1

For almost two decades, Michelle’s life had been a series of whys. Why did she lose her virginity when she was 14 to a guy who can’t remember her first name? Why did she take chemistry every year when she hated it? Why did she put a blue streak in her hair that left it damaged for months? The answer to that one was easy, to piss off her parents. But now, why the fuck was she letting Peter marry Liz. That, she had no explanation to, whatsoever.

Michelle had made a serious amount of mistakes in her life and this had to be the worst one by far.

She had to admit, this wasn’t easy. But he just looked so happy, who was she to stand in the way of ‘love?’ Cindy clinked a glass in her face, her eyebrows raised, making Michelle jump out of her trance. For what felt the millionth time in her life, it was time to put on a show. Michelle stood up and walked to the front of the room, facing the crowd of pretentious guests, and put on a smile. 

“For those of you who I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting yet,” The last thing she wanted to do was meet them. “I’m Michelle but I guess you can all call me MJ, and this has got to be, one of the happiest days of my life.” 

Because sobbing in the back of a van with her dress half on screams the happiest day of her life. 

The happiest day of her life may have been when she first met Peter, during recess in elementary school when he knocked her elbow while she was drawing as he tripped, apologising profusely afterwards. 

It may have been when they were eight and she found out they lived in the same apartment building, bumping into each other with their respective guardians in the elevator. Michelle’s mom said she’d never seen her smile so wide, and her mom still maintains that to this day. 

Maybe when the year after, Peter asked Michelle to come over and they built a fort in his room. Peter’s Aunt May was not allowed in unless she bore cookies, the only thing she was somewhat ok at baking. He told Michelle about his ‘weird’ dream. 

He dreamt he was the pivot on a pair of scissors. Neither knew what it meant. Michelle didn’t think it was weird. 

But no, this, this had to be the happiest day of her life. How could it not be? 

_**12 years earlier.** _

Michelle had never, ever, been this drunk before. But hey, she was turning 18, so who cares? This party wasn’t even for her, it was one she and Peter had heard bouncing through the hallways at school the day before. It was perfect, neither of them had to do anything but show up and get wasted.

Despite all the stares they got from people who didn’t particularly like them, well, MJ (people tended to think she was a stuck up bitch but she was actually just a private person) she was having the time of her life.

Shitty music had never sounded better, Peter’s dancing had never been worse. His laughter had never sounded so pretty. A slice of pizza had never looked so appealing and the bowl of chips had never made her hungrier. 

She swayed as she stumbled into the bathroom, Peter trailing closely behind, their hands intertwined. Giggling, she leaned against the counter and pulled Peter into her. His drunk eyes and curly hair had never looked so inviting. 

Both hands found their way onto his chest, him holding onto her elbows and their noses accidentally brushed. Peter blushed but MJ kept him close, one hand holding the back of his head. 

They stayed like that, relishing in the intimacy and breathing in one another. Peter could already taste the alcohol in her. Finally, as MJ’s eyes flickered from his to his lips, she made the best decision she’d possible ever make, and also the only one she’d probably ever forget. 

She pressed her lips to his, Peter responding immediately by holding onto her hips. The kiss was sloppy and slow, understandably so from the state of them both. No one's lips at ever felt so right on hers; like they were meant to be there.

Peter pulled away when their tongues bumped, breathing heavily and staring at her with wide eyes. Michelle smiled, tilting her head to one side before leaning in again, only to miss and stumble. Her foot hooked around the other and she fell flat onto the bathroom tiles, narrowly escaping the edge of the bathtub, leaving a dumbfounded Peter in her wake. 

It took a couple of minutes, but eventually, she started laughing, made Peter help her up and kept drinking. 

Perhaps, continuing to drink after hitting her head due to a state induced by the previous drinking, wasn’t her best idea. 

The night went on and ended at the point where MJ wound up in the hospital getting her stomach pumped, Peter taking the fall for her and her mom continue to scream about his terrible influence. 

“Peter,” MJ whined, bundling up into her duvet as he sat on the end of her bed. “You can’t tell anyone about last night, not that you have anyone to tell besides Ned. Still, not a soul.” 

“Why?” Peter laughed. “What’s so bad about last night?” 

“It’s embarrassing.” She huffed, pressing a hand to her forehead. 

“No, no, no, you don’t have to be embarrassed about it.” Peter snickered. 

“Yes, I do! It was awful, I’m such a bad daughter.” 

“Well, bad can be good too,” Peter replied, laying down on his side, propping himself up on his elbow. 

“No, Peter. Last night was terrible. It never happened.” Michelle quirked a brow at him, begging him with her eyes to go along with it. 

“Which-which part was terrible?” He looked down, tugging at a loose thread in her sheets. 

“All of it, now again, not a soul. How did we get back anyway?” Michelle asked, sitting up when Peter did. 

“May picked us up. I had to give a parents name and obviously, I wasn’t going to put down your mom. She thinks I’m a dropkick, ‘how do you plan on being a doctor if you continue on like this’ blah blah blah.” He laughed slightly as he twiddled his thumbs. 

“I’d say don’t listen to her but it’s not like she’s exactly wrong,” Michelle smirked, causing Peter to laugh and shove her jokingly. 

“Whatever,” He huffed sarcastically. “May told Tony and Tony said I have to clean his windows for two hours every day until they’re all done.” 

“Doesn’t he have like thirty floors?” 

“Yep. It’s not that bad, Liz Allen just started interning there.” A dreamy look washed over his face as he smiled at MJ, clearly smitten with the girl he was hoping to see every day. 

“Forget about it,” Michelle scoffed and Peter furrowed his brow. “Even I want to fuck her but I’m at an advantage, I’m not a virgin.” 

“For your information, she smiles at me in the hallways now and she always talks to me during decathlon practice.” 

“Yeah, because you’re a bit further behind than the rest of us,” Michelle joked, pressing a finger to his nose and fake pouting. “Liz just doesn’t want the team to lose.” 

“Fuck off,” Peter mumbled and Michelle laughed, pinching his nose. He smiled and grabbed her wrist, initiating a play fight between them. “Don’t you dare touch me again, nerd.”

_______________________________________

 

Peter and MJ weren’t exactly invited to this event, but they were showing up anyway. Harry Osbourne was holding a ‘get together’ at his massive house in the suburbs. He had a backyard and everything. 

When they got there, Peter drifted towards Liz but Michelle, always the one making sure he wasn’t a total loser, dragged him away. They went and talked to Ned and Betty, laughing and sharing a few drinks.

Peter told them about her getting her stomach pumped on her birthday, which earned him a punch on the shoulder. Betty gave her a sympathetic smile while Ned laughed loudly, causing Peter to snicker too. Michelle tried to be angry, but caved, rolling her eyes and letting out a small laugh. 

A couple of taps on her shoulder caused her to turn around, interrupting her mid-laugh. There stood Harry Osbourne, in all his glory. She cleared her throat and looked up at him, feeling Peter’s eyes boring into her. 

“Hey,” Harry smiled, glancing at Peter before looking back at MJ. “Can we talk?” 

“We are.” She deadpanned, a small, sarcastic smile adorning her features. 

“Right,” He cleared his throat, looking at Peter again. “Do you want to go to prom with me?”

“I would, but you’re four years too late. I’m going with Peter, sorry.” 

“Oh, right, yeah cool. Well, if plans change, you know who to call.” Harry smiled at her, winking before it dropped slightly as he looked at Peter. He cleared his throat and nodded at her before going back to his group of friends. 

“So-so why’d you say no?” Peter stammered nervously, pulling at his collar. 

“Because we’re going together, that’s always been the plan.” MJ furrowed her brow, confused at his sudden uncertainty. 

“Well, it’s just- uh,” He scratched the back of his neck. “You know, I’ve been seeing a lot of Liz lately because of the whole, thing, and uh- word of mouth says that she wants me to take her.” 

“Oh,” She gulped but smiled small at him. “Well take her, if you want to.” 

“But then who would you go with?” Peter asked after a moment of silence, rolling his lips. 

“Peter,” She scoffed. “I just got asked by Harry Osbourne, the hottest and richest guy in our year. Not that either of those things really matter, but at least my photos will look good.”  

Peter laughed slightly, making her breath out a laugh too before shoving it down with a sip of her drink. He gulped, looking around and spotting Liz off to the side. She smiled at him and waved, biting her lip. MJ raised her brows, looking back at Peter who was slightly blushing and waving back awkwardly. 

“Go ask her, loser.” 

“I-” Peter sighed, “so this whole situation is quite convenient for you then?” 

“It’s convenient for you too,” She pointed out, before pointing at him and then at her. “Go.” 

Peter opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Instead, he left, walking up to another girl who was taller than him. Michelle watched on, a lump forming in her throat and a ball in her stomach. She had to turn away when Liz’s excited ‘yeah!’ echoed through the backyard, her lips finding a place on Peter’s blushing cheek. 

Michelle walked up to Harry, telling him her plans had changed and she would love to go to prom with him. Would she? Not really, but that was beside the point. Harry smiled and slung an arm over her shoulder, pulling her into his side before leaning in. MJ went along with, placing her lips on his, but it meant nothing. 

_______________________________________

 

Half-way during her exam, someone tapping her thigh was the last thing she wanted. She ignored it for a while, up until the point it got infuriating. Rolling her eyes, she looked to her left and saw Peter with a stupidly wide, boyish grin on his face, holding up a piece of paper under his deck.

‘Guess who got laid last night?’ 

Michelle’s jaw clenched and she looked at her paper, taking in a deep breath before making sure the teacher wasn’t looking and snatching the paper off him. She scribbled on it hastily before passing it back, looking back at the teacher. 

‘Poor girl :(‘ 

Peter scoffed quietly, passing it back a second later. Michelle sighed quietly, unfolding it, her face dropping and the lump in her throat getting bigger as she read it. Why were her eyes glazing over? It’s not like it would’ve been anyone else. 

‘Liz seemed to quite enjoy it, for your information.’ 

A shadow casting over her paper caused her to look up, her face falling for a different reason at the sight of the teacher looming over her, palm outstretched. Michelle winced and looked at Peter, giving him a pitiful look as she handed the note over, Peter’s eyes widening and his face getting pale. 

Their teacher quirked his brow, giving Peter a look before returning to the front of the class. He placed the note under a magnet on the whiteboard. Michelle suddenly hated both of them for having such big handwriting. 

“Congratulations, Peter,” He spoke, too loudly, causing the whole class to look up and see the note. Gasps and snickers erupted around the room, causing Peter to groan and Michelle to hold her head in her hands. “I’m sure the principal would love to congratulate you both for finishing your exams in record time.” 

Michelle slammed her pencil down, snatching up her bag and storming out of the class, Peter following close behind. She could hear him calling out her name and feel his presence behind her. The one exam Michelle actually cared about, she didn’t care about any of the science exams, that’s not what journalism courses particularly cared about. Of course, it was English, of course. 

She ignored Peter, making it very clear, she was not happy. Not just because of her now flunked exam, either. 

_______________________________________

 

Michelle was just shoving an earring in when a knock echoed through the apartment and into her room. She was yelling got her mom to open the door but after no reply, she huffed and opened it. Behind it was a sheepish looking Peter holding up a tie. She finished putting her second earring in and said nothing, leaving the door open while she retreated back to her room, Peter following. 

She took her dress off the hanger and gestured for him to turn around. He complied, rocking back and forth on his heels as he listened to her drop her dressing gown to the floor and get into her dress. Peter hummed to himself, running his tie through his hands over and over. 

“Zip.” She instructed him, causing him to turn around just as she pulled her hair to the front. Peter walked over and cleared his throat as he did the black dress up, his hand brushing her skin lightly. 

When he was done she turned around and Peter looked her up and down, his breath hitching in his throat. Peter tripped over his tongue trying to find the right words to say, he knew Michelle would make fun of him for looking like a goldfish, so he spat it out. “You look really pretty.” 

“Therefore I have value?” She quirked a brow and took the tie from him, wrapping it around his neck. Peter laughed nervously. 

“You know that’s not what I meant,” He stuttered, only adding fuel to MJ’s smirk. 

“I know, I was just messing with you.” She finished putting his tie on and slapped his chest, stepping back. “You look pretty too.” 

Peter laughed, running a hand through his hair. 

“I missed you, Em.” 

“I missed me too,” She smiled, pushing a piece of Peter’s hair behind his ear before leading him to Aunt May’s car, him trailing behind like a lost puppy. 

Now, the best part of her night so far had to be sitting in May’s rusty old car, drinking vodka out of MJ’s hip flask that she kept in a garter on her leg. No one would dare touch her there. Peter grimaced every time he took a swig, Michelle laughing at him before making a face of her own. 

They had to duck down behind the dashboard to make sure none of the teachers, or narky students, saw them. They had another few minutes before the doors would close and they wouldn’t be allowed in, so they both drank as much as they could in one go, Michelle had to will with all her might to not throw up. 

A knock on her window caused them both to jump out of their seats, thank god it was only Harry standing outside. She put the flask away, pushing her dress back down before opening the door and running a hand along her pony-tail and straightening her necklaces. Michelle planted a smile on her face, gave Peter a quick hug before opening the door and stepping out. 

She'd forgotten how much effect alcohol had until she stood up, stumbling slightly, Harry catching her with a hand on her waist. Michelle’s heels clomped on the concrete and Peter snorted, causing her to shoot him a nasty glare. 

Harry laughed, and she smiled up at him. Peter rolling his eyes as he kissed her. Michelle pulled away quickly, winking at Harry and whispering for him to save it for later. He smirked and led her inside, his hand trailing further down her with every step. She didn’t mind.

“Asshole,” Peter scoffed before getting out and meeting Liz outside, holding her hand on the way in.

 

MJ had to admit, prom was as pathetic and pointless as she thought it would be. The only reason she actually went was to get laid, and before then, to spend time with Peter. Obviously, that wasn’t happening. She wasn’t sure what made it clear, the fact Liz was eating his face off in the middle of the floor or the fact Harry couldn’t keep his hands off her.

Fuck it, she smiled at Peter, who beamed back and pointed at Liz excitedly. She gasped sarcastically before grabbing Harry’s wrist and dragging him off the dance floor. Thank God, the prom was held at a hotel and she’d forced Harry to get the most expensive suite in the whole place. Perks of having a rich boy tripping over her, she guessed.

On the elevator up, it took mere seconds for him to push her against the wall and slam his mouth onto hers. They kissed sloppily, his hands pushing up her dress and slowly snaking up her thigh, he laughed into her mouth when he felt the flask. She pushed him off, pulling out the flask and taking another swig. She needed it. 

The elevator came to a stop and Harry stepped out, holding her hand and looking for their room as fast as he could. When he found it, all the way down the end of the hall, obviously, he swiped the door card and let her in first. At least he had some redeeming qualities, she supposed. 

Michelle wasn’t a materialistic person, but holy shit was this place impressive. It must’ve been the size of her entire apartment, with a view that looked over the New York skyline and the biggest TV she’d ever seen. It was a massive open floor plan, the only separate room being the bathroom. 

Harry placed a hand on her ass and pushed her in direction of the bed. Michelle reached back, unzipping her dress and kicking off her heels before laying on the bed. Fuck, it was the most comfortable thing she’d ever felt. Michelle suddenly loved Harry Osbourn. 

She sat up on her elbows and watched as he kicked off his shoes and unbuttoned his shirt, smirking down at her. His hair falling into his face as he fell onto her. As her hands undid his belt, she nearly laughed, Michelle Jones? A white man's whore? Who would’ve guessed?

“You’re so fucking hot, MJ,” Harry sighed as his lips kissed her chest and he pushed down the straps of her dress. (She knows.) 

Michelle hummed and tangled a hand in his hair as his mouth met one of her breasts. His hand fondled with the other, rolling it around and god, could he get on with it? She wrapped her legs around his hips and squeezed, trying to get the message across. 

She palmed him through his unbuttoned pants, a groan erupting from his throat as he pressed into her hand. Michelle was scared he was going to cum right then and there. So she tugged down on his pants, urging him to stand up and kick them off along with his boxers. She lifted her hips off the bed and pulled her underwear off, watching as he struggled to open a condom. 

It took a lot, but she managed to hold back a sigh as he fumbled with it. She leant over his shoulder, him looking back at her a couple of times and trying to hide himself. It wasn’t like it wasn’t big or anything, Michelle appreciated it. 

“Do you want me to do it?” She asked, bored. 

“Nah, nah,” he huffed, finally rolling it on and hissing when it snapped onto him. “I’m good.” 

MJ lay back down on the bed, him crawling over top of her and pulling a sheet over them, kissing her neck as he lined himself up. She nearly whined in anticipation. He slid in slowly and Michelle squeezed her legs together, rolling her head into the pillow as he groaned into her skin. 

Harry bottomed out, moaning before pulling out and doing it again, his thrusts increasing with speed each time. Alas, Michelle didn’t feel all the much. She was sprawled out on the sheets, Harry a sweaty, moaning mess above her. 

This time she couldn’t help the sigh that escaped her mouth but Harry took it the wrong way, or rather, the right way. He grunted and smiled smugly, “You like that?” 

“Oh, yeah,” She whispered sarcastically and ground up into him in an attempt to feel some kind of actual pleasure. She would've felt bad for almost laughing when he let out a long, loud moan, thrusting into her one last time before collapsing next to her, but she didn’t. 

“That was so good,” Harry said, out of breath and looked at her. She smiled and hummed and placed a hand on his chest, planning to try convince him to do something, anything else to her. 

Her fingers traced down his chest daintily, slipping under the sheets. Harry made a noise of approval and smirked down at her. However, something stopped her. Something was missing, with her hand wrapped around him, she noticed the absence of a rather important piece of latex. 

“Where is it?” She asked, her forehead creased. 

“Where is what?” He furrowed his brows. 

“The condom?” Michelle panicked and lifted up the sheets to confirm that, indeed, it wasn’t where it was supposed to be. “Where is it? Harry, where is it?” 

“Well, I don’t know--” He watched with a hint of annoyance as MJ scrambled through the sheets, trying to find it. 

“Well, it can’t just disappear!” She hissed, her eyes going wide with realisation. She looked under the sheet at herself, her hand going between her thighs.  

“ _ Fuck _ .” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fuck y'all i did it. i still don't like kids. also i can't belive my first time writing kinda proper smut wasn't petermj but whatever. don't fall for ur bestie its not worth it. anyway, hope ya'll enjoy this hehe i'm excited. twitter: @/lowqualtom


	2. Chapter 2

Michelle has gotten herself into a handful of predicaments in her life. She’d found herself stuck on the fire escape. She had been locked in the janitors closet with no underwear, she really hoped they’d disappeared into the abyss because otherwise, poor janitor. When she was 13, the tissue paper she stuffed in her bra fell out in front of her whole P.E class. But this was a new low. 

Never did she think there’d be a day where she was crouching on the ground of a hotel bathroom with a handheld mirror between her legs, trying to pull a condom out of her vagina. 

Sure, she was comfortable with her body but my God, no one needed to look at themselves like that for an extended period of time. 

She was growing more and more frustrated by the second. At least 15 minutes had passed and she still couldn’t find it. Her hair was all over the place, her body sweating profusely and her arms getting tired and shaky. 

The door to the bathroom opened and Harry popped his head in, sticking his tongue out at the image in the mirror. “Any luck? Do you want me to look? Get on all fours.” 

“Fuck off!” Michelle exclaimed, exasperated. Harry snickered and shut the door, leaving her in there alone. 

What the fuck was she meant to do? There was no chance she was calling her mother, no way. Her mom would rather stab a rusty fork into her own eye before thinking about her daughter having sex. 

Sighing, she knew there was only one person she could call and while they were best friends, this wasn’t a typical best friend situation. 

So she tossed the mirror to the side, standing up and going into the room. She grabbed Harry’s shirt and pulled it on, grabbing her purse, heels and dress, bundling them all up in her arms. 

Hardy shouted protests but she could care less. She ran out of the room, dialling the number she knew off by heart. She cursed under her breath as the phone continued to ring, finally, he picked up. 

“Hello? Em?” 

“Peter, Peter, I’ve had an accident!” 

“An accident?! Are you ok? MJ what happened?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Well, I’m not fine, I need your help, Peter, please.” 

“Alright what’s wrong?” 

“Well, you know the thing with Harry and me,” The elevator door opened and her face dropped at the sight of a middle-aged man standing in it. She stepped in, shrinking into herself and focused back on Peter shouting into the phone, music thumping in the background. “Well something happened and it got lost and I can’t find it.” 

“Find what? MJ what the fuck are you going on about?” 

“The thing, Peter, the thing. Look, can you meet me in the lobby?” 

“Michelle, I don’t even have any idea what you’re on about. Can you just tell me straight up?” 

“Fuck, Fine!” She glanced at the man behind her and took a deep breath. “The condom came off inside my vagina and it’s stuck up there and I can’t get it out.” 

The elevator doors slid open and there stood Peter on the other side, Liz hanging off his arm. He lowered the phone and gaped at her. “I shouldn’t have asked.” 

MJ was bright red, she didn’t know if it was from anger, frustration, embarrassment, probably all of the above. She speed walked out of the box, not looking back at the man and grabbed Peter’s arm. 

“Bye, Liz, hope you had a good night.” She smiled at her and waved sharply before marching Peter to May’s car, demanding he drive her to the ER. 

He was sceptical about it, due to him not being completely sober, but as soon as MJ, in all seriousness, said ‘Get me the coat hanger for my dress and I’ll fish it out with that, then,’ he started the car. 

Peter told her she wasn’t allowed to let the condom fall out on his seat and he was scared she was going to snap him in half right then and there. 

She wasn’t sure what was worse, staring at her own vagina in a handheld mirror, or have a male doctor promise her he didn’t think she was a prostitute before going in between her legs. Honestly, he was the better one of the two that had been down there that night. 

Michelle slept all the way back to their apartment building, which really, wasn’t all that long but she would take what she could get. He parked outside the building and not having the heart to wake her, carried her inside and all the way up to his floor. 

Her mom would shoot both Peter and MJ if they turned up at the door looking the way they did. Michelle looked rough, to say the least, and a passed out Michelle in his arms was not an unfamiliar sight to her mom, that wasn’t a good thing. 

So, he took her to his apartment. Michelle groaned awake when Peter threw her on the bed, her head banging his wall. She whined and rubbed the back of her head, pouting her lips. “Now my head and my vagina hurt.” 

Peter laughed a bit and placed her belongings down on the chair in the corner of his room. She watched as he kicked off his pants and dropped his shirt to the ground, pulling a more casual one over his shoulders. 

He stared out the window of his room for a few seconds, a sigh escaping his lips before he turned to MJ. “I can’t wait for us to get out of here.” 

“Hm?” Michelle hummed, furrowing her brows. 

“I’m applying for a scholarship at Oxford.” 

“Oxford?” 

“May says it one of the best Medical schools in the world, and you could study English and Literature there. You could be a journalist there too, it doesn’t have to be here.” 

Michelle smiled and looked at him, a small laugh escaping her mouth. “I live in this shitty apartment building and you think I can afford to go to Oxford?” 

“First of all,” Peter replied with raised brows, “I live here too. Secondly, you could so get a scholarship too. You’re the top of the whole school in English and you have like a 20.0 GPAl!”

“Yeah well,” She sighed. “I flunked that exam didn’t I?” 

“You were finished.” Peter pointed out. 

“I needed to read through it again!” 

He rolled his eyes before falling onto the single bed next to her, squishing up against the wall. Peter rested his head on MJ’s shoulder and closed his eyes. Michelle tangled her legs with his while also intertwining their fingers. It was quiet before a small laugh tumbled out of her. 

“I may have just had a condom stuck inside me but at least I didn’t fuck Liz Allan on this piece of shit bed.” 

_______________________________________

It was fair to say, Michelle’s mom was not ok with Oxford, especially with Peter. Especially because of Peter. MJ’s mom was a reasonable person, she did raise MJ after all. The worst part about it was that her mom was a nurse, making her one hundred more times critical of Peter. 

It also didn’t help the fact that she was rather disappointed when Michelle said she wanted to be a journalist, saying that she was wasting her intelligence. Michelle, of course, disagreed, claiming that it was the optimal way to let the world know what she has to saw and make some kind of change. God knows that’s what the world really needs. 

Her mom ranted on and on about how Oxford was too far, too expensive, too over top. Too close to Peter. She should’ve just said she hated Peter and wanted her daughter as far from him as possible and carried on with her day. It didn’t matter. MJ had mastered the art of blocking out her parents while pretending to listen. 

Her dad, however, he was a different story. As much as he loved his wife and agreed with her, he wanted MJ to have the world and more. He wanted her to live life to the fullest and if that meant going to England for college, then so be it. Obviously, he wasn’t a massive fan. What parent would be thrilled at the idea of their children flying off to England, only to possibly never return? 

And knowing MJ, the likelihood of her never returning was high. 

When her mom left the room in a hurry, tears brewing her eyes after MJ made a comment about how it wasn’t like her mom did things for her anyway, her dad sighed and patted the spot on the couch next to him. 

“Michelle, I know you’re very independent, and I love that about you, but you have to understand how your mother feels.” Her dad wrapped an arm around her, her head falling onto his shoulder. 

“I know,” Michelle sighed and pulled at a loose thread on her jeans. “But technically I’m eighteen now and I can do whatever I want.” 

“No, you can’t, because she would never talk to you again.” 

“After screaming at me.” 

“After screaming at you.” 

“I don’t understand why she hates Peter either, she thinks he’s a bad influence on me or something but he’s about to get a scholarship to Oxford for Med! How is that a bad influence? If anything I’m the bad influence. Plus, I’ll never let a man influence me, especially a white one who’s shorter than me,” MJ exclaimed, sitting up and looking at her dad with a frown. 

“I know you wouldn’t, your mom is just protective. She loves you, you know it. Change can be difficult for her,” His hand came up to stroke her hair, which made her scowl but she allowed it. “She had trouble when you announced your name was now MJ and not Michelle.” 

“I still can’t believe you let her name me Michelle.” 

“She was the one growing you for nine months, it was up to her,” He shrugged. “Besides, I didn’t feel like losing all my limbs.” 

_______________________________________

Big envelopes meant big news. That was something Michelle had picked up from every teen movie. Big envelopes meant big news and in her hands, was a big fast envelope. In the right-hand corner, was a stamp that very clearly read, ‘Univeristy of Oxford.’ 

She wasn’t one to freak out over much, but holy shit, holy shit, it was the University of Oxford. Her eyes widened and she dropped all the groceries her mom had made her go and get, claiming that since she was no longer at school, she more time to do chores. Her fingers trembled as she started ripping open the letter and letting the envelope fall to the kitchen counter. 

Michelle didn’t read past the first line before squealing, since when did she squeal? She ran out of the apartment with reckless abandon, leaving the front door wide open, Michelle never left the door open. 

She forewent the elevator, too impatient to wait for it and instead ran up the three flights of stairs to Peter’s floor. Out of breath, she knocked on Peter’s door and bit her lip, bopping up and down with excitement. 

Her face fell when the door swung open however, a shirtless and sweaty Peter opening the door. With one look, it was painfully obvious what she’d just walked into. His hair was all over the place and he was almost as out of breath as her, his sweatpants on backwards and barely covering anything. 

“Oh,” MJ stuttered, “I’ll come back later.” 

“No, no, it’s fine.” Peter leaned against the door frame. “What’s up?” 

“No, nothing,” She hid the letter behind her back. “Just um, wanted to see if you wanted to get coffee.” 

“Oh uh, later, yeah?” Peter smiled before looking back into his apartment. “I gotta go.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” MJ nodded and laughed a little. “Show her what else that micropenis can do.” 

Peter rolled his eyes but smiled, going back inside and shutting the door. Michelle stayed standing outside it for a while, looking at the ground. A lump formed in her throat and she cursed, since when did she give about Peter’s sex life? 

She took the elevator back up to her floor, no longer feeling the need to run around like an energizer bunny. Michelle fiddled with the letter in her hands, sucking in her cheeks. Her excitement had switched off with the clicking shut of Peter’s door. 

Shoving the letter into the drawer on her bedside table, she put a hand over her mouth before running into the bathroom. Michelle fell to her knees in front of her toilet, emptying the contents of her stomach into the bowl. 

Sighing, she leant against the wall behind her, catching her breath. She genuinely couldn’t tell what the reason for her throwing up was, probably the idea of Peter having sex with Liz. Poor Liz. 

MJ rinsed her mouth with mouth wash before skulling a cup of water, wiping her chin as she sniffed. She hated throwing up, dreaded it and so far, she’d thrown up at least once a day for almost two weeks. Up until now, she’d blamed it on drinking milk with her coffee every day even though she was lactose intolerant, because who the hell drinks black coffee?

Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she pulled it out, hoping it was a text from Peter letting her know he was finished. It wasn’t. It was her period tracker, reminding her to drink water and log symptoms, a notification she got every two hours and ignored every single day. Only this time there was something hidden in the second line to the notification. ‘Your period is four days late.’

Everything started adding up, from the mood swings to the throwing up to not remembering the last time she had a period. This was the last thing she needed, literally the last thing on her list. Whatever, there was no way she was actually pregnant. No way. 

Michelle was never one to assume, so she grabbed her bag and shrugged a jacket on. She recalled walking past a chemist on her way back, it looked run down but hey, it would be cheap. This time she really felt like throwing up, she wished she would throw up, just to prove she could throw up for other reasons. 

The chemist was dark and not welcoming in any way shape or form, but whatever, she just needed to get her shit and get out of there. She scoured the shelves and almost burst into tears when she couldn’t find. 

She sucked it up, and approached the front counter, hitting the bell on the desk. There was a jumble of boxes and an explicit yelled before a short Asian girl with long, bright pink hair walked out. There was something dangling from her lips and MJ knew by the smell that it definitely was not a cigarette. 

“What do you need?” The girl asked, a perfectly drawn on eyebrow quirking and a sigh falling out of her lips, Michelle narrowed her eyes at her. 

“A pregnancy test,” Michelle tried to act tough, the girl sort of intimidating her, no one intimidated MJ. She was normally the one who scared them. Her voice betrayed her, quivering slightly. 

The girl shrugged, grabbing one from behind the counter and putting it down in front of her. Michelle bit her lip looking at it, trying to tell herself this had to be some sort of fever dream. 

“Well, are you going to take it or not?” She asked, already looking bored with the whole situation. “Eight dollars.” 

MJ swallowed back harsh words before snatching the box and forking over cash. She didn’t move, she stared at the box and tapped her foot on the ground. The test eventually began bouncing around in the box, jiggling with the movement of her body. 

Her eyes travelled back up to the girl, who now had a rather sympathetic look on her face. I mean, what girl the same age wouldn’t pity Michelle right now. No teenager wanted to ever be faced with a pregnancy test, yet here she was. 

“There’s a bathroom here if you want to use it.” 

The girl, who she discovered to be called Cindy, led her to the back of the store and unlocked the small bathroom for her.

It took a while, but after a pep talk with the mirror, she managed to sit down and take two tests, throwing them into the sink as soon as she did, wanting to put it off for as long as she possibly could. She sat with her head in her hands, leg still bobbing up and down. 

Michelle really was going to throw up, but no. Michelle was MJ, Michelle fucking Jones and she didn’t let anything stop her. So with a deep breath, she stood up and looked into the sink. Her face threatened to fall but no, she was MJ, she could take it. She snatched up the tests after washing her hands and opened the door. 

Cindy was still waiting on the other side, she peered into Michelle’s hands and with wide eyes, looked back up at her. “Shit.” 

The walk back to her apartment was miserable, absolutely and justifiably miserable. She could say goodbye to Oxford, probably say goodbye to her childhood apartment and parents, say goodbye to any sort of life. 

No, Michelle was fine, she could deal with it. Michelle always knew what to do, she would figure out what to do. 

She didn’t know what to do.

‘peter, are you still busy?’ 

‘yeah sorry m, liz’s parents are taking us out for dinner to this really fancy restaurant :) gotta impress them, you know?’ 

It took every ounce of strength and dignity she had not to call him and cuss him out right then and there. Fuck Liz, fuck her parents, fuck a fancy fucking dinner and fuck Peter! She didn’t need him. Michelle had herself and that was enough. 

Was it? 

‘oh cool, have fun and don't spill water down your shirt again, loser’

She hit send as soon as she walked into her room. Michelle let her bag drop to the ground and her back slide down the door. With shuddering breaths, she threw her phone across and the room and put her head in her hands.

For the first time in months, Michelle cried. 

Not just cried, she sobbed. Her shoulders hunched and shook with every sob, her hands tugging at the roots of her hair. She hated this, she hated everything about it. 

She hated not knowing what she was going to do, what people were going to say, what was going to happen next. Nothing was within her control and that was something Michelle despised. She couldn’t help but feel there was a parasite attached to her that had sucked her entire life out in a matter of fifteen minutes. 

Hell, it’s not like Peter was going to know what do, the boy needed her to tie his damn shoelaces for him. But she needed him, she needed him with every bone in her body and she hated that too. 

She cried for herself and her lost future, she cried for the unborn baby and its shitty future, she cried for Harry, knowing that it would mess with him in some way. Michelle cried for everyone and everything. 

Cried for a future that almost didn’t exist. 

And as she sat on her floor, her phone shattered and a baby growing within her, there was only one word she could think. 

‘Fuck.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im ignoring my camping fic and avoiding it my writing this so here u go twitter: @/lowqualtom


	3. Chapter 3

The last night had gone by in a wild blur of tears and vomit, the weight of the situation crashing down on her with no one to help her out from under it. Peter had text her later that night, asking if she wanted to get coffee with him at the place they always went to down the street.  

 

She got there early, as always, waiting for Peter, who was late, as always. The spoon in her hand was being twisted and tortured by her, she almost felt sorry for it. She leant into the palm of her hand and had to force herself not to cry, she’d done far too much of that in recent hours.

 

Michelle didn’t look up when she heard hurried footsteps coming towards her, or when the chair scraped against the hardwood floor and Peter flopped into it, biting an open letter between his teeth.

 

“Sorry I’m late, Liz just- yeah. What's up? I’ve got news,” Peter spoke so quickly she almost didn’t keep up but she gave a small smile and tapped her spoon on the table again.

 

“Me too,” She laughed slightly before a letter was shoved in her face, the opening line sticking out like a sore thumb.

 

“You got-you got the scholarship?” Her voice cracked as she looked at him, her face full of disbelief. Peter bit his lip and nodded, smiling widely. “Peter, I- wow, congratulations, you deserve it.”

“May’s over the moon, it’s amazing. Have you heard back yet?” He exclaimed, almost jumping out of his seat and causing all the patrons in the cafe to look at him.

 

“Uh,” She looked down and twisted her cup around. “No, no not yet.”

 

“Oh,” Peter cleared his throat. “Well they’d be crazy not to let you in, you’re the smartest person I know!”

 

MJ would have to disagree due to recent events.

 

“What about um, Liz, have you told her?” She muttered, glancing at him before down at her untouched coffee.

 

“She’ll be fine,” Peter shrugged before laughing. “Are you alright, you’re sticking up for Liz.”

 

“Only because I still want to sleep with your girlfriend,” She joked, smiling weakly.

 

Peter rolled his eyes but smiled, scanning her face once more. “What’d you want to tell me anyway,”

 

“It doesn’t matter,” She shrugged. “This is way more important anyway.”

 

“I thought you’d be more excited, we’re on our way out of this city like we always wanted! My flight’s in three days so I have time to get settled and stuff, but you’ll be coming later, right?”

 

“Three days,” She whispered, feeling tears brimming again. MJ forced them back, she hated crying even more now. “Uh, yeah, course I’m coming. I’ve just got things to sort, you know, with mom and all.”

 

Peter dropped the topic, deciding that it was sensitive because she apparently hadn’t heard back from Oxford. He ordered himself a coffee and they talked like how they used too. Peter realised how much he missed MJ and holy shit, he was going to miss her while they had their time apart.

 

She wasn’t behaving quite like herself but once again, he brushed that off as just not hearing back from Oxford yet. Peter made fun of Liz’s pretentious parents and Michelle made fun of them too, she thought he may have forgotten how to make fun of rich people. Peter could never forget that, it was a tradition.

 

And as Peter laughed and talked about how he was nervous to get on a plane with that long of a flight time while Michelle made fun of him for being weak, she realised that she too, was going to miss him. However, she wasn’t going to hold him back more than she already had.

 

So she told Peter that even with the scholarship, finances would still be tough and they just had to wait a while to get that sorted, but yes, she’d be there. Indeed, finances would be tough when Baby Jones came along.

 

The next three days whizzed by and the next thing she knew she was standing next to Peter at the airport, her heart about to explode and the thought of throwing up growing more prevalent by the second.

 

May had chosen not to come, Peter said she was apparently too upset and wanted to cry to herself in peace. Michelle could understand that and honestly, she almost wished she’d done the same.

 

She may have mistaken the heart in her throat for a lump but either way, she couldn’t let it show. MJ tugged on the strings of her hoodie, a habit she’d picked up from Peter and looked down at him as he rummaged around in his carry on.

 

“Close your eyes,” He said with a smile as he stood up with his hands clasped together.

 

Michelle took a deep breath and closed her eyes, rocking back and forth on her heels, slightly scared about what he was going to do to her. She never knew with Peter. His footsteps echoed around to the back of her and his hand tickled her neck as he brushed her hair to the side.

 

MJ flinched slightly as something cold hit her skin, goosebumps raising around her neck.

 

“Sorry,” Peter laughed and whispered next to her ear, his hot breath fanning over her.

 

She opened her eyes a looked down, a gold necklace sitting nicely on her neck, taking the form of a globe. Michelle looked at Peter who had taken his spot in front of her again, smiling sadly. He reached out and opened up the necklace, it folding out to reveal a whole lot of tiny photos.

 

“I know you’re gonna be there in like, two weeks, but-” Peter shrugged. “You know no matter where I am or who I’m with I’m still right here with you.”

 

Her breath shuddered as she looked at all the photos, ranging from when they first meet to mere weeks ago. Her fingers closed the necklace gingerly before she launched her arms around his neck. Peter hugged back, his arms snaking around her waist and holding her close.

 

Michelle sniffled and felt his head nuzzle into her neck. With a deep breath, she pulled away, their noses bumping into each other before staying like that. Her body was screaming at her,  _ kiss him _ , but her brain, the part she listened to said  _ no, you’ll hold him back _ .

 

So with a gulp, she pulled away and wiped under her eyes. Peter laughed breathlessly, his arms leaving her waist and picking up his bags. Michelle looked at their feet, laughing when she noticed they were both wearing the same pair of beat up old vans.

 

“Keep in touch, ok?” She asked, looking at him again.

 

“Ok,” Peter whispered, slowly breaking out into a smile before walking towards the gate, turning to wave at her one last time, his fist pumping into the air in celebration. Michelle laughed as he all but skipped onto the plane, staring at the last spot she saw him for a few more minutes before turning away and stalking back to her parents car.

 

She got into the passenger seat and immediately broke down into tears. Her mother looked at her as if she was crazy, her brows furrowed. Sure, she understood Michelle being upset about Peter leaving but she had never seen her daughter sob like this before.

 

“Michelle, what’s wrong?” She asked as she turned the car off, turning in her seat. “I know you’re not used to being apart from Peter but you’ll be there soon and it’ll be fine.”

 

“That’s the thing, I can’t go,” Michelle replied, her voice cracking multiple times as she wiped her nose.

 

“Why not? You told us you got the scholarship?”

 

That was true, she did tell them, showed them the letter and everything not that long ago. Michelle had planned to get herself to Planned Parenthood as soon as she possibly could. She’d always told herself that if she ever got pregnant, it would be getting sucked straight out before anyone even had a whisper of an idea.

 

But it was different now. Now that it was actually happening, she was actually pregnant and growing a human in her stomach, she couldn’t do it. Michelle couldn’t bring herself to do it and she had no idea why, as she wasn’t one to back down from her own beliefs.

 

“Because-” She started, her voice failing her. She stopped to take a few deep breaths and glanced at her mom quickly. Her mom that believed Michelle was a virgin, who believed she was saving herself until marriage, as all good Christians should do. Which MJ obviously thought was stupid but that was beside the point. “Mom- I- I’m pregnant.”

 

Her mother said nothing but Michelle could see her face get pale and fall. MJ rubbed her eyes again, her face blotchy.

 

“I don’t know what to do and I’m so scared, mom. I’m so scared. I’m not ready to have a baby but I can’t- this wasn’t supposed to happen but it did and now I don’t know what to do.”

 

Michelle watched as her mom said nothing, which was almost worse than her yelling. She breathed shakily as more tears fell from her eyes. Her hand came up and pulled the globe charm back and forth on the chain, she was shaking so violently she was convinced that the car must be moving too.

 

It turned out, that the car was moving but only because her mom had turned the car back on. Her mom pulled out of the parking lot and started heading in the opposite direction of where their apartment was. Michelle was scared her mother was going to dump her off at a shelter right then and there.

 

“Mom, please, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for this to happen, please don’t hate me.”

 

“We’re going to Planned Parenthood and you’re getting an ultrasound and a blood test to make sure you and the baby are healthy. Who knows how drunk you were whenever this happened,” Her mom cut her off, her eyes flickering to Michelle and the road every few seconds. “Who’s the father? Peter?”

 

“No,” Michelle laughed and sniffed, “No, never.”

 

“Thank goodness for that,” Her mother sighed. “We don’t need his dwarf height bred into our family.”

 

By the time they reached the facility, MJ had managed to calm herself down enough to walk inside and get all the procedures done without a hitch. Her mom stayed by her side the entire time, holding her hand and stroking her hair.

 

The ultrasound did confirm that she was in fact pregnant, not like she didn’t already know that. But so far, everything seemed perfectly normal and the baby was healthy.

 

Before they got back into the car, she hugged her mom so tightly and Michelle’s mom could barely even remember the last time she’d received a hug from her daughter, let alone one this long.

 

“I love you, mom.”

 

“I love you too, MJ.”

 

_______________________________________

 

Peter text Michelle everyday, telling her all about how amazing England was and how excited he was for Oxford. Michelle text back, telling that financials still weren’t amazing so chances were she wasn’t going to be able to go for a while. Peter understood.

 

Every now and then she’d get a message from May, telling her she missed her and that MJ should come around for tea sometimes. It hurt like hell, but MJ had used almost every excuse in the book not too. If May found out she was pregnant, then Peter would find out and that couldn’t happen. Michelle would make sure that would never happen.

 

Due to a lack of friends, she’d resorted to visiting the drug store she’d bought her test at far too often. Cindy now becoming the closest she’d ever had to a female best friend. As much as the girl was feisty and harsh, she always spoke the truth which was exactly what Michelle needed in her life right about now.

 

“Well your life is far more interesting than I first anticipated,” Cindy said, her eyebrows shooting up with surprise as she stocked the shelves. Michelle had just finished telling her about how she’d got pregnant and that no, the boy who just got on a plane and left her alone was not the father. “Just get rid of the thing already.”

 

“My parents are Christian and besides, that was always the plan if I got pregnant but I can’t bring myself to do it anymore,” Michelle sighed, leaning her head against the wall and folding her arms over her stomach.

 

“I’ve had three, they aren’t that bad. Sure, you cry for a while after but, you get over it,” Cindy shrugged, flipping her still shockingly pink hair over her shoulder.

 

“I had my life planned,” Michelle ignored her. “Go to Oxford with Peter, study journalism, get a flat with Peter, get a job, start my own publication company, get married and then have kids. Not flunk out of Uni, get pregnant, stay stuck in New York, have no money, get old and fat and die alone. Not that I need a partner to have self worth or anything.”

 

“Yeah, you’re right. Why don’t just off yourself right here? Plenty of drugs around and you can die in my arms, miss Juliet,” Cindy scoffed and looked at her, unamusement written all over her. “There are plenty of people who can’t have kids, give the shit away, someone crazy will want it.”

 

“That’s not-” The glimmer of an idea washed over MJ. “That’s not a bad idea, I’ll just reapply for next semester, have the baby, give it away, Peter doesn’t even have to know! I’ll just say I’m having financial struggles still and then bam! I’ll be in England six months later like nothing ever happened!”

 

“For someone who’s so pro-woman, you sure worry about a white boy’s opinion a lot.”

 

“Peter’s different,” Michelle scoffed. “Ok, maybe not that different but it’s different.”

 

_______________________________________

 

As Michelle discovered, pregnancy sucked, everyone who said pregnancy was a blessing was a liar and she was definitely not glowing.

 

Her back hurt, her head hurt, her hips hurt, her boobs hurt, everything hurt. MJ had to pee every ten minutes and standing up made her lightheaded. She could barely move without wincing and self care become harder and harder each day that passed. It soon became having a two minute shower before chowing down on Thai food and watching Dr Phil with her dad, making fun of everyone who went on the show.

 

The only good part about it as that she never had to leave the house unless it was for doctors appointments and people began to do everything for her. At first, she absolutely hated it, Michelle being the stubborn and independent person she was. Eventually, she warmed up to it and Cindy brang her dumplings every day.

 

Every day her mom asked if she’d told Peter yet and the answer was always no. She didn’t plan on that answer changing anytime soon. Peter believed that she was working all the time and saving money, hence the reason for not being able to talk very often. At times she felt bad but all she did was remind herself that no, she couldn’t hold him back.

 

It was becoming harder and harder to avoid May, she had to wear the baggiest clothing she had whenever she went out. Thank God it was winter. May had eventually stopped messaging and as much as Michelle hated that and it genuinely hurt, it was for the best.

 

The ever increasing size of her belly made her resort to simply just not covering it up, letting it sit out in the open and her shirt scrunched up under her breasts. Michelle had discovered that babies do in fact, make rather nice tables.

 

Her phone was resting in her hands, another text from Peter’s coming through, she smiled as she replied.

 

“Have you told Peter yet?” Her mom asked, sighing slightly.

 

“I’m sending him my flight time, that’s all he needs to know.”

 

“Michelle-” MJ cut her off with a wave of her hand.

 

Her father was making fun of another person on Dr Phil when her belly jumped, causing m&m’s to go flying to the ground. Michelle could’ve cried at the loss if she wasn’t so shocked by the way her stomach had just moved. Sure, she’d felt the baby kick before, which was a whole other crazy sensation, but it’d never done  _ that _ .

 

She took the bowl off and stared at her moving stomach, which still made her feel queasy. Her mother walked over and looked at her stomach as Michelle shoved another handful of candy in her mouth. MJ’s mom was on her knees in front of the couch, in awe of Michelle’s stomach.

 

It began to jump up and down with an almost steady rhythm and her mom looked as if she could cry. MJ furrowed her brows, glancing between her mom and the baby in confusion.

 

“She’s got the hiccups,” Her mom whispered, looking at Michelle and pouting. “She’s adorable.”

 

“It’s not even out of my stomach yet,” Michelle scoffed, after breaking out of her small trance, caught watching the baby hiccup.

 

“She, Michelle, she’s a girl,” Her mom sighed and stood up as MJ pulled the shirt over her stomach for once, hesitating to put the bowl back before decidedly tucking it under her arm.

 

“Whatever,” MJ muttered, not enjoying the sudden realisation that the thing, the baby, her baby, really was a tiny human.

 

She gulped, glancing at her still hiccuping baby before focusing on the TV, her belly never feeling so heavy. Michelle cleared her throat, wishing she could go back to ignoring the ever-present stomach. No matter how hard she tried, the feeling never faded.

 

It didn’t even fade later on that night when she was sitting up against her headboard, all the lights off in her room, the only source being that of outside through her window. MJ tried, she really tried to forget the stomach as she’d managed to do every single night before then. Sighing, she pulled her shirt back up, her eyes fixated on the bump.

 

Slowly, she raised a hand and put it on her stomach, feeling her skin for the first time. How she’d gone almost 8 months without so much as touching her bare stomach, she’d never know. Her other hand joined, both coming to a rest on either side of her bump.

 

The baby still had hiccups, her stomach still jumping her second or two. Michelle rubbed her stomach gently, a finger tracing small circles into her skin. She remembered reading somewhere that babies could hear in the stomach, she knew it wouldn’t be able to understand her but hey, it was worth a shot.

 

“Can you hear me? Mom and Dr Google said you can, so,” She whispered and cleared her throat. “Try holding your breath, like this.”

 

MJ held her breath, watching her stomach and laughing slightly when the jumping stopped. Her hands made another circle around her belly as she smiled.

 

“See that wasn’t so bad, maybe we should’ve done that earlier, Ellie,” Michelle’s breath hitched in her throat when she realised what’d she’d just said. “Not we, you. And- your name isn’t Ellie, I’m not picking your name. Ellie isn’t your name, don’t- don’t hold onto that. Your real parents will pick that.”

 

She sighed, her fingers tracing shapes over her skin for a couple more minute before she tugged her shirt back down. Michelle coughed awkwardly before shuffling down her bed, pulling the covers over them and settling into the pillow. With a final frown, she glanced at the lump in her bed, forcing herself to squeeze her eyes shut, not opening them until the morning.


	4. Chapter 4

When MJ was ten, she fell down a flight of stairs in her apartment building and broke her wrist. She took the elevator ever since. When she was fourteen, she popped her cherry, well, someone else did. When she was sixteen, she bruised her tailbone after she fell over at the ice skating rink with Peter. She couldn’t sit on a hard surface for weeks. 

 

To put it short, Michelle thought she knew pain. She thought she’d seen it all and holy crap was she wrong. This had to be the most pain she ever had and ever would be in. 

 

The contractions started out not all that bad, reminding her of period cramps. They came every once and a while but they still let her watch Game of Thrones in peace. 

 

The pace picked up rather quickly however, she soon found herself on her knees in front of the couch, hissing in sharp breaths as her mom rubbed her back. 

 

She could hear her father in the kitchen, scrambling his words together to talk to the hospital who told them to come in once the contractions reached a certain time apart. 

 

MJ cursed her body for deciding to slow down, her contractions now lasting what felt like forever but being even longer apart. She wanted to rip her hair straight out from her head and scream, so she did. 

 

“I never planned to be pregnant in the fucking first place and now I have to deal with this shit! Harry Osborn can come back from Ibiza so I can snap him in fucking half,” MJ growled and gritted her teeth as another contraction started, her fists clenching so tightly around a pillow she was surprised her hand didn’t break. 

 

Her dad couldn’t stand it any longer, he immediately helped her up as her mom guided her through breathing exercises before slowly helping her into the car. She’d never seen her father, usually so careful and contentious, drive so recklessly. 

 

Michelle’s water broke about an hour after they arrived and that’s when it  _ really _ started. No amount of back rubbing or breathing could help her now, it was a constant searing pain like someone was reaching into her and pulling her muscles as hard and as far as they could. 

 

She’d thrown up a couple of times lying on the bed, fat tears rolling down her face. Her dad had ended up getting kicked out, not that he minded all that much. he busied himself by calling the social worker. 

 

It was too much for her to handle, the nurses telling her to push, her mom whispering words of encouragement in her, the searing pain as MJ pushed a literal human out of her. 

 

And to think, she’d once found the thing that made the baby rather uncomfortable. 

 

Michelle was groaning incoherent words, suddenly wishing she’d never let her mom talk her out of an epidural. As a string of crude words exploded from her mouth, she felt a pop and soon a babies cry filled the air. 

 

She let go of her mom's hand, pushing the sweaty hair off her face. A cry of relief sounded from Michelle and her mom started crying, looking between her daughter and her granddaughter. 

 

The exhausted girl closed her eyes, trying her best to catch her breath. A laugh sounded when she realised, holy crap, she’d just given birth. That wasn’t something just anyone could say. 

 

Her pain was slowly beginning to dull when her dad poked his head in the room. “The social worker is here.” 

 

Michelle opened her eyes and looked at him before looking at the baby, her baby, in the nurse's arms. She’d been wiped down but was still crying, the nurse looking sympathetic for both Michelle and the baby girl. 

 

“Would you like to hold her?” The nurse asked, her voice so small Michelle almost didn’t catch it. 

 

MJ looked at the baby warily, knowing that she should just give it up now. There was something stopping her, she didn’t like it. She cleared her throat and winced as she pulled herself up a bit before nodded, cautiously extending her arms. 

 

Her baby was placed in her arms gently and that was it. Michelle watched as her baby eventually stop crying as she listened to Michelle’s heartbeat that was right next to her head. 

 

More tears fell from Michelle’s eyes as she looked down at her. She was so small, so precious and MJ had the sudden urge to never let her go. 

 

Small hiccups erupted from her and MJ laughed, sniffing and trying to hold back tears. Michelle’s finger made small lines on her tiny cheeks before tracing down her arm. 

 

As her daughter looked up at her and didn’t look away. MJ knew right then and there. 

 

“I promise,” She whispered, looking her up and down once more. “Ellie, I promise I’m going to be the best mom ever.” 

 

Her father sent the social worker away, MJ not feeling one bit bad for the family who was supposed to be getting a new child today. 

 

To her own surprise, Michelle nearly burst into sobs when the nurse had to take Ellie away for a checkup to make sure she was perfectly healthy. Never once throughout her pregnancy did she acknowledge this baby was hers, and now, she never wanted Ellie out of her sight.

 

Her mom coaxed her into calming down, Michelle realising just how exhausted she truly was. A mere few minutes later, MJ was fast asleep, resting for the first time in what felt like months. 

 

Cindy came to visit, bringing dumplings and flowers. She was making such a ruckus in the room that MJ woke up and threw a pen at her. Although, it was a good thing she did because the nurse came back in with Ellie, telling Michelle that she was perfectly healthy and that it was time for her first feed. 

 

That scared her, a baby basically chomping down on her boob for what? Ten minutes straight? MJ was wrong, it was more like forty-five minutes due to both her and her baby having to do this for the first time. It wasn’t all that fun, and yes, it did kinda hurt. 

 

She’d get used to it. There was a lot she’d never get used too though. 

 

_______________________________________

 

As predicted, being a mom kind of sucked. 

 

Her nipples were fucking sore, she resorted to putting lettuce on her boobs and MJ had no idea what a full night's sleep felt like anymore. MJ was never that big of a fan of kids, and here she was, looking after one night in and night out. Not that she minded all that much, it was worth it every time Ellie so much as smiled at her. 

 

The thing she hated the most, was the crying. There were times when even after feeding, changing, everything Michelle could think of, Ellie wouldn’t stop. MJ liked quiet, quiet was her friend, she could only dream of quiet now. 

 

Three months in and walking around the room, bobbing up and down with a crying baby, she’d never missed Peter more. Peter was always good with kids, she always dragged him along to her family events because he would distract her younger cousins with his all too joyful attitude. Peter would know what to do, he always knew what to do. 

 

It was late, and she felt bad, knowing her parents got just as much sleep as she did thanks to the horribly thin walls in this apartment building. Tears streamed down her face just as quickly as they fell down Ellie’s, if not faster. She tried her best to calm her down but she’d done everything she could do. She’d fed her, changed her, tried her best to cuddle her but decided that holding a crying baby to her own swelling chest wasn’t the most comforting thing. 

 

Her door creaked open, her dad poking her head into the room with sympathetic eyes before stepping in, walking over to Michelle and scooping Ellie out of her arms. She reluctantly handed her baby over but knew that it was for the best. Her daughter calmed down almost immediately and MJ couldn’t help but collapse onto the bed, her head in her hands. 

 

“I’m such a bad mom, she deserves so much better and I can’t give it to her,” Her voice was muffled by the palms of her hands, the salt of her tears staining her tongue. 

 

“No, no, don’t say that Michelle, this happened to your mother too, it’s ok,” Her dad soothed as he sat down next to her, Ellie swaddled into his chest. “This isn’t an easy job and you’ve taken it on under not typically ideal circumstances and I’m so proud of you, Em.” 

 

MJ sniffed and wiped under her eyes, looking up at her dad and leaning her head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head as her eyes fluttered shut, taking a deep breath. 

 

From that night on, she set herself some rules in order to try and keep a grip on herself and hell, keep a grip on reality. They didn’t always work, she cried far too often for her taste but she couldn’t help it, she could finally understand why her mother always cried whenever she did. There was a lot of crying in their household now. 

 

Five months since giving birth, she got too comfortable. 

 

Whenever she’d left the house, she’d usually leave Ellie with her parents for the time being, as it wasn’t like she was ever gone for more than ten minutes at a time. Not once had she seen anyone from high school since they’d finished, the only people she ever spent time with now were her parents and Cindy, not to mention Ellie but she came hand in hand with Michelle. 

 

As sad as her life may have seemed to an outsider, she didn’t mind it. She had a supportive family and a supportive friend, friends if you counted Peter. Her mom reminded MJ every day that all her lying was going to bite her in the ass, but Michelle would figure it out when the time came. 

 

She enjoyed her time looking after Ellie, even if it was never how she’d pictured her life ever going. Sure, she missed certain aspects of her life, but she was doing just fine without them. Heck, she’d even have a job if Ellie didn’t throw up on J. Jonah Jameson. 

 

But, she got too comfortable. 

 

Her mom had started going back to work for a couple of days every week and her dad had picked up more shifts. Michelle felt terrible, but what was she supposed to do? At one point, she’d considered selling pictures of her feet to strange people on the internet but ultimately decided against it. 

 

She’d made it to midday with no mishaps, but when she’d gone to make  _ herself _ food for once, the fridge was practically empty. With a sigh, she shoved on a pair of shoes and wrapped Ellie in a jacket, slightly nervous to take her outside without her mom for the first time, but she’d survive. 

 

Michelle made it out of her apartment just fine, after triple checking it was locked, and strolled down the street, making faces at Ellie. She walked down the street just fine, ignoring the odd stare she got from a judgemental middle-aged woman and turned into the closest food place she knew. 

 

Stocking the fridge was not her job and she wasn’t about to make it hers, takeaways would be just fine for now. 

 

MJ ordered her go-to meal and took a seat in the corner of the room, taking Ellie out of her pram and holding her to her chest. There was no particular reason for doing that, she just wanted to hold her daughter. 

 

She was so caught up in her child’s smile that she almost didn’t hear her name being called from above her. Assuming it was her food, she put Ellie back down in her pram before standing up. It wasn’t her food. 

 

Standing in front of her, with her glasses magnifying her already wide eyes, was a rather shocked looking May. 

 

Michelle’s face fell and all the colour drained from it, her own expression matching the once familiar woman’s in front of her. Her breath hitched in her throat and her heart fell to her stomach. She’d done so well for a year, avoiding May, as much as it hurt. 

 

It may have been a year, but May still looked exactly the same and God, it hurt. Michelle missed her so much, she knew that but just how much she missed her hit her like a truck at that moment. MJ was fighting the urge to leap into the woman's arms and give her the biggest hug she’d ever given anyone, holding back the tears that threatened to spill. 

 

“MJ--” May broke the silence between them, slicing it open with her silky voice. 

 

“May, I- I’m so sorry I don’t- I’ve been avoiding you because--” 

 

“It’s ok, I understand,” She sighed as Michelle looked down at Ellie. 

 

“Can we- can we have lunch at mine? I’ll explain everything, I promise,” MJ croaked, the desperation clear in her voice as May gave a sympathetic look and nodded. 

 

The walk back to their apartment after they both got their food was the worst feeling Michelle had ever had, it was almost as painful as giving birth. May was quiet, she was never quiet and that was the worst part. 

 

They sat down at Michelle’s table, MJ grabbing them both plates and placing Ellie down on a playmat next to them. May couldn’t take her eyes of her, and honestly, Michelle couldn’t blame her. It wasn’t everyday you found out the girl you watched grow up had a baby of her own. 

 

May looked up from her food at Michelle when she sat down, her eyes wide. “Tell me that she’s at least not Peter’s.” 

 

“Oh God,” Michelle blushed and shook her head. “Peter- no, never, never ever,” 

 

“Thank goodness,” May sighed, placing a hand over her heart. “I love you, MJ, but I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if that was Peter’s baby.” 

 

“Honestly, I wouldn’t know what to do either,” Michelle scrunched up her nose at the thought of Ellie being Peter’s and the things that implied. 

 

“Well, she does look a lot like you,” May cleared her throat before sighing. “Why didn’t you tell me, Em? You have no idea how many nights I’ve spent wondering why you started avoiding me.” 

 

“I didn’t want Peter to find out,” Michelle shoved the food around her plate. “It’s not exactly-- I’m not ashamed of Ellie, I mean, I was, she was supposed to be adopted by a rich white family but I changed my mind two minutes after giving birth. I just,” She sighed. “It’s just not ideal circumstances and all I’ve done is be reduced to ‘Ellie’s mom,’ and I guess, not telling Peter meant someone still knows me as MJ.” 

 

“Peter doesn’t know?” May gaped. “I thought he knew and you just asked him not to tell me for-- whatever reason. God knows he does everything you tell him too, including keep secrets from me.” 

 

“I avoided you because I thought if you knew you’d tell Peter, I found out I was pregnant less than a week before he left and I didn’t- I didn’t want to hold him back,” She muttered. “He does everything for me and not telling him was my way of giving back. I don’t know.” 

 

The conversation eventually turned, and they were back to MJ and May, May and MJ. Michelle finally felt a little bit more like herself again. Don’t get her wrong, she loved Ellie and was mostly content with her life, but there were just certain things she still wanted to do that she wouldn’t be able to. 

 

Everyone always said that being a mom couldn’t stop you from doing everything you dreamt of, from being successful. They were wrong, Michelle didn’t think about anything else other than Ellie. 

 

Was she hungry, tired, did she need changing? Was she developing normally? Did that couch mean she was going to die? Did that shake of her fist mean something was wrong? Michelle’s brain was no longer concerned with college, or when he next drink was, she hadn’t had sex since the night Ellie was conceived and to be honest, she really wanted to have sex with someone. 

 

But how was she supposed to do that when all she could think about was if Ellie’s poop was the right colour? 

 

After having Ellie, she realised that love was in fact, inexhaustible. She had always thought that she had a certain amount to give out and right up until the point Ellie was born, she believed that she’d used whatever she had in her small heart up, mainly on Peter. 

 

But then she held her daughter for the first time, and her cold heart grew a couple more sizes. 

 

Sitting here watching May play with her daughter, filling her apartment with Ellie’s giggles, made her heart swell once more. She couldn’t describe the feeling of knowing that she had someone else on her side, and as much as she wanted to be independant and hated asking for help, she’d learnt that asking for help was ok. 

 

Ellie had taught her a lot of things over the past few months, and Michelle couldn’t have asked for a better teacher. Of course, being a mom was hard, but she was getting better at it everyday. She was learning, growing and every milestone that Ellie reached made it all worth it. 

 

May promised she’d look after Ellie while Michelle showered, something that had almost become a luxury to her. As much as MJ trusted her, she couldn’t help but be wary, call it separation anxiety but Michelle didn’t want to leave her daughter for more than ten minutes at a time and Michelle’s showers took at least half an hour nowadays. 

 

So after a bit on convincing on May’s side, MJ stepped into the much needed shower and scrubbed herself as much as she could. Being a mom wasn’t glamorous and Michelle was pretty sure she was covered head to toe in all sorts of bodily fluids, but she didn’t like thinking about that. 

 

As she stood under the hot water, letting it run over her and wash away the aches of the past few months, she realised why she avoided showers for reasons unrelated to Ellie. 

 

There was nothing to do in the small white box but think, and she couldn’t help it, she couldn’t help but think about him. 

 

And fuck, she missed him. 

 

It took everything in her to stop her knees from buckling under the crushing weight of his ever present absence. 

 

It wasn’t fair, that even though she’d been given Ellie, she had to lose him.

 

Did she ever really have him anyway? It’s not like he was the one who got her pregnant and escaped to London to get away from her.

 

No matter, she wanted him, needed him. 

 

He was the only person Michelle would ever admit to needing, she needed Peter Parker with every beat of her small heart. 

 

And here she was, surviving without him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I KNOW it's been a long time, sue me, but I don't really like kids. but here you go. Thanks for 1000 hits!! 
> 
> twitter: @/rueshewitt


	5. Chapter 5

It had been a week since MJ bumped into May. Since then, she’d been over almost every day. MJ couldn’t lie, she really valued having May around during the day instead of being alone all the time. Of course, May had a job so she wasn’t there 24/7, but even an hour was better than nothing.

 

She wished more than anything that she had May around the second she found out she was pregnant. Not only was the woman a friend, but she was also a second mother and had been for over a decade.

 

Today was a good day, in that MJ had managed to Ellie to sleep fairly quickly, she was able to shower and make herself an actual meal and Cindy had visited for a while. Now here she was, folding Ellie’s washing while the TV played quietly in the background.

 

With a final huff, she blew her hair out of her face and put the final piece of folded laundry down. Just as she put it down, there was a knock at the door. She stood up and walked over, expecting it to be May coming over.

 

Her tired eyes were suddenly much more awake when it wasn’t May on the other side of the door. This was the last person she expected, the last person she wanted to come over. She looked them up and down and resisted the urge to burst into tears. “Peter?”

 

“Hey,” He gave her a small smile and shoved his hands further into his pockets.

 

“What-what’re you doing here?” She breathed out, closing the door to her apartment more so he couldn’t see in and leaning against the wooden frame. “Not that I- Oh my God, I just can’t believe you’re back.”

 

“Just for a few days,” He bit his lip. “I just wanted to catch up with you.”

 

“Yeah, yeah, let’s go- let’s go get coffee or something?” Michelle squeezed her way out of the door.

 

“No,” Peter shook his head and ran a hand through his newly short hair. “I’m really tired from the flight. Is it okay if we just stay here?”

 

Michelle froze, her mind immediately going to the baby storm that was her apartment. The laundry on the couch, the baby swing in the corner, the play mat right in the middle of the living room. The bottles and breast pump discarded in the sink, waiting to be washed.

 

Then most importantly, a literal baby sleeping in her bedroom.     

 

“Yeah,” She cleared her throat. “Yeah, of course, just um- sorry it’s really messy.”

 

“It’s fine,” Peter laughed and shrugged, following after her as she rushed back inside.

 

Peter took off his shoes at the door and Michelle used those few precious seconds to throw blankets and towels over anything and everything baby related that was in plain sight. Ellie’s favourite teething toy was thrown behind the couch, one of her shoes ended up under an empty mug.

 

Michelle walked into the kitchen and turned the kettle on, throwing some other dirty dishes on top of the bottles in the sink. She stared down at the bench, her eyes wider than ever before, realising that this lie was unravelling right in front of her and there was nothing she could do about it.

 

“Are you okay?” Peter asked as he walked into the kitchen. “You seem a bit stressed?”

 

“Oh you know,” She gulped, looking up at him. “This full-time job thing is a lot.”

 

Peter hummed, picking something up off the bench and tossing it in the air. “Why aren’t you there now, it’s Tuesday?”

 

“Day off?”

 

“I see,” Peter replied as the kettle began to whistle and Michelle hastily made them both tea. “How did she take the pacifier by the way? Some babies don’t like it at first.” 

 

“Oh, Ellie was fine, she really likes--” She stopped, her breath catching in her throat as she turned her head away from him. Michelle sucked in a breath, her finger running up and down the handle of her mug as her hair tumble down, shielding her face from Peter. Tears welled up in her eyes and a lump formed in her throat. “I was gonna tell you, I promise.”

 

“Yeah, when? I found out from May, and she only found out last week,” His voice was soft but Michelle could still feel the disappointment in it.

 

“I didn’t want to hold you back,” She replied with such emotion Peter had never seen from her before.

 

Peter sighed, moving closer to her and pushing the hair out of her face, brushing it behind her ear in a way so gently that Michelle wasn’t sure if it had even happened. It was the first time she’d felt Peter’s touch in over a year and this time she didn’t stop herself.

 

MJ collapsed her body into Peter’s, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head into Peter’s neck. His hand came up to hold her head and his other hand rubbed soothing circles into her lower back. A kiss was placed on the side of her head as she sniffed. “I missed you so much, Peter,”

 

“You have no idea how much I missed you, Em.”

 

“I missed me too,” She attempted to joke but her crack betrayed her. With a croak and a barely audible voice, she added, “I needed you,”

 

“You know I’d drop everything for you.”

 

She did know that, but she didn’t want him to. Michelle stayed in his arms until she felt like she could breathe properly again. Even then, she didn’t let him let go.  They had a year's worth of hugs to catch up on and Michelle wasn’t complaining.

 

All the times that Michelle could really do with one of these hugs flickered through her mind like a badly cut film strip. There was her, clutching the positive pregnancy test in the bathroom of a dirty drug store, her in a ball against her door, sobbing for her unborn baby and the world it was being brought into. Her after throwing up for the fourth time in an hour on a particularly bad day.

 

Then there was her, minutes after giving birth and holding her tiny daughter in her arms, wishing she could look to the side and see Peter’s beaming face like she always used to be able to do.

 

But he was here now, and everything was okay.

 

Michelle wanted to ask Peter all about England and what he’d been up to, anything to move on from this moment of weakness but she didn’t have the chance to. Ellie’s cries echoed through the apartment and MJ swore while untangling herself from Peter.

 

She all but ran into the room, scooping her daughter out of the cot and wrestling her arm out of her baggy shirt and letting fall down to her stomach. Peter had followed her, leaning against the door frame of her room while Michelle had her back to him.  

 

When she turned around, Peter put a hand over his eyes, a blush coating his cheeks. Michelle rolled her eyes. “A decade of friendship and you think I give a fuck about you seeing my boobs? Which by the way, are currently feeding my child, not on PornHub.”

 

“Sorry,” Peter took his hand away before his eyes flickered down to Ellie.

 

His face immediately softened, his eyes never leaving the tiny human’s face. The fact that said baby also happened to have been made by his best friend never left his mind. Needless to say, it was a lot to take in.

 

The instinct to protect Ellie at all costs hit him like a truck. His breath was knocked out of his chest as he looked back at Michelle who had been watching him the whole time. She gave him a small smile before pulling her shirt back up and resting Ellie's head on her shoulder.  

 

Peter had never seen her act like this before. He was used to the careless MJ, the throw caution to the wind MJ, this MJ was the exact opposite. He’d never seen her handle something so carefully, except it wasn’t just something, it was a baby,  _ her _  baby.

 

“MJ,” He broke the silence, “Can I ask who the dad is?”

 

“Harry,” She scowled, muttering the answer as she pat Ellie’s back while bobbing up and down.

 

“So-- prom?”

 

“Mhm,” She hummed. “Before you ask, yes he knows, he took a job in Ibiza a month after I told him but I don’t care, he pays child support.”

 

Peter nodded and watched MJ burp, Ellie. With a sigh, Michelle kissed her head before leaning her cheek gently on her daughters. Her eyes shut as she swayed back and forth before eventually looking at Peter again. “Do you want to watch a movie with us?”

 

That’s how they ended up with the three of them on the couch, Peter sitting in the corner with MJ tucked into his side, Ellie on his chest. It was strange and awfully domestic. One of his hand was tangled in the ends of Michelle’s unkempt hair while the other was on Ellie’s back, almost holding her there in case she fell. Which would never happen, but just in case.

 

They had talked for a while, Michelle telling him all about what her year had been like and Peter felt guilty. MJ had been here, occupied with being a mother, while Peter had been across the world having well, having the time of his life if he was honest.

 

It wasn’t that he pitied Michelle because being a mom wasn’t a burden at all and even though Peter had never pinned her as the type to even want kids, she didn’t seem to mind being a mom at all.

 

But being a mom wasn’t easy, and while she wasn’t doing it alone he couldn’t help but feel bad he wasn’t there to help. Even if that just meant doing a load of laundry for her. Then again, Michelle had kept it a secret from him to stop him from doing that exact thing, she knew him too well.

 

Michelle’s breathing had transformed into a steady rise and fall that was almost in sync with Ellie’s. Peter found himself sub-consciously doing the same. Her eyes had closed, her eyelashes resting over her cheeks and her lips parted ever so slightly.

 

A tendril of hair fell into her face, causing her to scrunch up her nose as it tickled her. Peter smiled softly, brushing it away. Michelle nuzzled her head further into his side in return.

 

He was just about to change the channel when her front door opened. Peter watched as the woman who more or less disliked him walked into the apartment, her jaw falling to the floor as her eyes settled on him.

 

“Hi, Ms Jones,” He whispered, not wanting to wake either of girls.

 

Michelle’s mom was about to reply, probably something snarky but when she saw a sleeping Michelle she softened. As much as she thought Peter was a bad influence, he was probably the person Michelle trusted the most in this world, and who was she to take that away?

 

She smiled gently, “It’s nice to see you again, Peter.”

 

Honestly, it really was. She almost missed the dorky boy’s bad puns and drunken phone calls. Kicking off her shoes, she went and sat on the other end of the couch, Peter’s eyes following her. With a sigh, she looked up at him.

 

“How’d you find out?”

 

“May told me,” He bit the inside of his cheek. “I booked a flight as soon as she told me.”

 

“Right, well,” She sighed. “I haven’t seen her sleep that peacefully in months, so thank you.”

Peter only smiled small and nodded, letting her stand up and continue on her own business. If all he could do is let Michelle rest for once, then so be it. For the minimal time that he would be here, he was going to do whatever Michelle needed, whether she knew she needed it or not.

 

The next day, after Peter had helped MJ clean up the apartment and made her family dinner, he stayed the night. He felt bad for not spending time with May, but she told him it was fine, that she’d spent enough time with Peter since he was born. Of course, she’d missed her nephew, but she understood that he wanted to be with MJ right now.

 

He’d woken up once during the night when Ellie woke up crying. Michelle seemed to expect it, she was already awake before Ellie was. Peter stayed quiet while he watched Michelle look after her, his eyes eventually drooping and his body putting him back to sleep before she was even half finished.

 

He managed to convince Michelle to go out for lunch with him like they used to do. Only this time, Ellie would be coming too, of course. After a twenty minute lecture about all of Ellie’s needs from MJ, he was finally allowed to watch her while MJ showered and got dressed.

 

She stumbled out of her bedroom with her shirt still being tugged on and shoes in hand, barrelling questions about how Ellie was, if she was even still alive. Peter made her put on her shoes before handing Ellie back, Michelle holding her daughter close and pressing kisses to her small head.

 

They walked to the usual cafe they always went to, Peter feeling slightly weird stepping foot in there after so long. MJ almost felt the same, she hadn’t been there since she started showing, too afraid to see anyone she knew.

 

Peter pulled out a chair for MJ, laughing when he realised they were in the same spot he told MJ he’d gotten into Oxford. Michelle furrowed her brows at him when he sat down. He shook his head and fiddled with a sachet of sugar.

 

She leaned over and got Ellie out of her pram and pulled her close into her chest. There was a breath she didn’t even know she was holding released as Ellie grabbed a section of Michelle’s hair, tugging slightly. MJ didn’t mind, it was just a reminder of her daughter.

 

“It’s really weird seeing you with a baby,” Peter said, breaking the silence after studying the both of them. “You never cared about anyone and now you’ve got a baby that I can tell you’d die for and I still can’t wrap my head around the fact she’s actually yours. Like, she’s not going anywhere.”

 

“I still can’t wrap my head around it either and I grew her for nine months,” MJ laughed slightly. “I just- I do sometimes think about what my life would be like if I didn’t get pregnant. I wouldn’t say it would be better but there are things I’d dreamed of doing that was so close to becoming a reality and I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to do them now. I wouldn’t exchange Ellie for anything, though.”

 

“Michelle you’re the smartest and most motivated person I know, I wouldn’t put it past you to found a country or something, even with Ellie. I--” Peter sighed, tapping his fingers on the table. “I’m just still kind of hung up that you didn’t tell me.”

 

“In my head, it was the best choice, for-for-- well not for me, for you. Well, you not knowing just meant I was still more than Ellie’s mom to someone, it kept the dream alive I guess,” MJ muttered, watching as her daughter fisted the necklace Peter gave her, the gold glinting in the light as Ellie’s small fist waved around.

 

A small smile erupted on Peter’s face as he noticed the necklace. “You and I both know that you’ll figure out a way to conquer the world if you wanted too.”

 

The breakfast was nice and the same staff from when they were regulars were still there, their eyes widening in disbelief when they saw Peter, and growing even bigger at the sight of MJ with a baby. Michelle wouldn’t lie, the familiar feeling of screwing with people’s heads was most pleasing to her.

 

Peter and Michelle were walking around the streets of Queens that had almost become distant memories to both of them. They passed the deli they got sandwiches from every day after school and Peter let out a breathless laugh.  

 

_ “Touch me again and I’ll cover your entire floor in LEGO while you’re sleeping.” _

 

_ Peter laughed, bumping into her as they walked down the street, only this time, MJ stumbled over her feet, sending her sandwich flying to the ground. _

 

_ They both stalled, Michelle, staring at the now crumpled paper in her hand, a paper which was once wrapped around a sandwich that was now all over the ground. A scowl erupted over her face, the concrete would never enjoy the collection of lettuce and tomato as much as she would. _

 

_ His face paled as he looked up at Michelle, her gaze still pointedly on the colourful mess of various vegetables on the footpath. The whole day, Michelle barely spoke except to let Peter know she was hungry whenever she felt like looking up from her book. _

 

_ Her fists clenched along with her jaw, slowly, she turned to look at Peter. Michelle’s eyebrows raised, her eyes burying him six feet under. “You’re dead, Parker.” _

 

_ Without another word, Peter took off down the path, going as fast as his feet would carry him. He could hear her going after him, her oddly long legs giving her an unfair advantage. He stopped outside their apartment complex, slamming the entrance and getting to the elevator as quickly as he could. _

 

_ Peter jabbed his finger into the up button as quickly as he could, cursing under his breath when the stupid moving box was taking far too long to get to him. He heard the entrance door open and shut and Peter debating making a run for the stairs but it was too late. _

 

_ MJ walked right up to him, shoved his sandwich into his face before taking a bite out of it. Peter grimaced at the feeling of mayo slathered over his cheek, Michelle gave him a shit-eating grin. _

 

Peter was about to remind her of the memory when a sickly sweet voice came from behind them.

 

“Peter? Michelle?”

 

They paused, both of them whipping their head around to see none other than Liz Allan picking up her pace in their direction. It only took a glance at her annoyingly skinny jeans and tiny waist for a frown to cover MJ’s face. She’d managed to go a year without seeing anyone from high school, why now?

 

This is why she didn’t leave the house.

 

She wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow her whole when Liz’s eyes landed on Ellie. Liz gawked at her daughter and Michelle had the sudden urge to step in front of the pram and rip Liz’s expensive extensions off her head.

 

“No way,” She laughed. “I haven’t seen either of you in months! I thought you guys were in England?”

 

“Peter is, I still live here.”

 

“Visiting,” Peter laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

 

“Tell me that’s not yours,” Liz laughed, her eyes flickering between Ellie, Michelle and Peter.

 

“She,” Michelle spat.

 

“Right, so, more than just friends huh?”

 

“Oh no-- that’s-- Ellie isn’t mine. Michelle and I aren’t- no, ew, no way,” Peter stuttered, his breath hitching at the idea of being the one who got MJ pregnant. At Michelle’s raised brows he paled even more. “Not that I- you’re really pretty, I would so have-- just, yeah.”

 

“Right,” Liz paused, eyeing the both of them before fixing her gaze on Michelle. “So, it’s yours?”

 

“She’s my fucking daughter, not an object,  _ Elizabeth _ ,” Michelle grit her teeth, tilting her head and glaring.

 

“Alright, jeez, she’s cute I guess,” Liz shrugged before looking at Peter and placing a hand on his arm.  “It’s so nice to see you, Peter, how long are you home fore? We should catch up.”

 

Peter moved away from her touch, stepping closer to Michelle. “Yeah, sure.”

 

MJ almost gagged at the way Liz practically undressed Peter with her eyes before giving them both a smile that neared a cringe. “Well it was crazy bumping into you guys, never pinned you as the mom type Michelle, you were always just so-- emotionless. See ya!”

 

Michelle’s knuckles turned white at her grip on the handles of the pram, Peter was scared she was going to bend the handle in half. He grabbed one of her hands, intertwining their fingers before poking her cheek. It was a bold move, considering he wouldn’t past Michelle to bite his finger off.

 

“I can’t believe you got me to leave my apartment for the first time in forever and we see Liz fucking Allan. What did we ever see in her?”

 

“Her lips.”

 

“Hm,” Michelle mused. “And her legs.”

 

“She’s got really nice lips,” Peter sighed.

 

“Alright calm down before you get a boner in the middle of the street.”

 

“Sorry, she just has-”

 

“Yeah, I know she gives good blowjobs you never shut up about it, now take me home.”

**Author's Note:**

> fuck y'all i did it. i still don't like kids. also i can't belive my first time writing kinda proper smut wasn't petermj but whatever. don't fall for ur bestie its not worth it. anyway, hope ya'll enjoy this hehe i'm excited. twitter: @/lowqualtom


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